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Four of the five top executives at Raymond James Financial Inc. received smaller pay packages for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, amid a meltdown in financial markets.

Although salaries for the four executives increased between 3.1 percent and 4.5 percent, their bonus payments declined, a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission said.

Thomas James, chairman and chief executive of Raymond James (NYSE: RJF), a financial services firm headquartered in St. Petersburg, was the most highly compensated executive listed. He received almost $3.6 million in total compensation in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, compared to $4.1 million in the prior year.

Richard Riess, chief executive of Eagle Asset Management, an investment adviser for the Heritage Family of Mutual Funds, had a $2.4 million total pay package in the just-ended fiscal year, compared to $2.5 million a year earlier. Chet Helck, Raymond James’ president and chief operating officer, saw his total compensation drop from $2.5 million to $2.3 million. Jeffrey Julien, senior vice president and chief financial officer, had a drop in compensation from $1.2 million to $1.1 million.

Van Sayler, senior vice president of fixed income at brokerage and investment firm Raymond James & Associates, was the only executive whose total pay package increased, from about $900,000 to $1.7 million in the just-ended fiscal year.

Bonus considerations

Raymond James considers base salary a small component of total compensation, which is heavily weighted toward annual bonuses, the SEC filing said. Bonus formulas for fiscal year 2008, which ended Sept. 30, were established a year ago and take into account the company’s overall performance as well as the profits of the specific subsidiary or department managed by an executive. They also include subjective evaluations of achievement of performance objectives.

In October, a committee of the board of directors reviewed results of the bonus formulas. The committee cut the normal bonus pools by about 10 percent in late November. The cut was made “because of the enormous impact of the financial markets on the company’s clients and shareholders, as well as to preserve liquidity in the face of a currently unfavorable business outlook,” the filing said.

The company said the board committee would have to review incentive compensation, if Raymond James is approved for participation in the U.S. Treasury Department’s capital purchase program. Raymond James applied for the program in November. In an annual report filed with the SEC in November, the company said the program could provide up to about $300 million in new preferred equity with the potential to significantly improve its liquidity.

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